‘The Voice PH’ winner Mitoy Yonting’s ‘Eat Bulaga’ past

Mitoy Yonting, the first-ever "The Voice of the Philippines." Photo courtesy of ABS-CBN

MANILA, Philippines – Mitoy Yonting’s shot to fame as a singer is courtesy of ABS-CBN’s “The Voice of the Philippines.” But it looks like the recently-concluded reality singing show isn’t Mitoy’s first brush as a television star.

There’s also a Youtube video of Mitoy and his brother Mylo Yonting as contestants of an “Eat Bulaga” singing contest during the late 90s.

The video shows siblings—both members of the band The Draybers—compete with other duo-contestants as they sing “Bakit?” by 90s band Rockstar for the “Rockstar: ‘Bakit?’ Sing-alike Contest.”

Unlike other singing reality shows, “The Voice of the Philippines” is not strictly for amateur singers. During the show’s semi-finals, Mitoy had to compete with singer Radha, a member of the band Kulay. The two members of Sarah Geronimo’s team—finalist Klarisse de Guzman and semi-finalist Morisette Amon—are also both alumni of reality talent shows (IBC-13’s “Star for a Night” for Klarisse, TV5’s “Star Factor” for Morisette).

There is also a ‘Draybers2Ellen” channel on Youtube, with videos that aim to take Mitoy’s band to the “Ellen DeGeneres Show.” Here, Mitoy performs Journey’s “Don’t Stop Believin” with The Draybers.

In an interview with “The Voice of the Philippines” winner during the press conference of Resorts World Manila’s free concert series as part of their months-long Thrillathon celebration prior his victory, Mitoy admitted he’s a frequent contestant of talent shows. He added he’ll remain with The Draybers even after his stint with “The Voice.”

“Masaya yung feeling na kahit hindi pa tapos ang ‘The Voice’, maraming naniniwala sa munting kakayahan ko sa larangan ng pag-aawit,” he said in an interview with Philstar.com and other members of the press on July 30.